ECONOMIC COOPERATION - AGCI · 2015. 8. 19. · Economic cooperation is not only increasingly...
Transcript of ECONOMIC COOPERATION - AGCI · 2015. 8. 19. · Economic cooperation is not only increasingly...
ECONOMIC COOPERATION
TASK FORCE: Enrique O'Farrill
Juan Fierro
María Eugenia Moraga
Eugenio Pérez
Marcela Vallejos
December 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
I. Introduction II. Background Surrounding the Concept of Economic Cooperation
A. International Cooperation: Changes Through Time B. Methodological Changes in Cooperation Methods
III. Economic Cooperation IV. Chile and Economic Cooperation
I. Introduction In recent years, economic cooperation, as a field of interest, has been increasingly
included in the Agenda of the Chilean Agency for International Cooperation (AGCI.
Economic cooperation is not only increasingly present in policy documents of donor
countries, but also both the objectives and the conditions of international cooperation
have gradually evolved towards a type of cooperation that is increasingly linked to the
economic field.
At present, economic cooperation is undoubtedly one of the most important challenges
that must be addressed in connection with vertical cooperation. However, adequate
methods to translate the theoretical concepts into concrete initiatives are still not clear.
This is partly due to the multiple contents assigned to the concept by the different actors
involved in international cooperation.
In general, economic cooperation is a concept that is consistently being used as a simile
for entrepreneurial, industrial, financial or productive cooperation. Neither is literature on
the subject available. This is further complicated by the fact that almost every donor
country assigns a different meaning to the concept in their policy documents.
For the above reasons, AGCI believes that it is important to begin analyzing this issue in
order to define the term, identify the niche where it can supplement public development
policies and make it operative on a nationwide level, in addition to determining its fields
of action and suitable instruments.
This process of analysis and debate initiated by AGCI in 1999 has been developed
under the context given by the priority subject areas defined by the government for the
period 1994-2000. These subject areas, which form the agenda of the State of Chile for
the said period, can be summarized as follows:
• A set of measures intended to modernize policies and institutional frameworks so as
to enhance democracy, bring decision-making closer to people, make justice more
timely and equitable, and improve public management.
• A program involving the modernization of the economic and productive structures to
ensure sustained and sustainable growth and economic competitiveness.
• Poverty reduction to enhance equality and improve the social and economic
integration of all Chilean citizens in the 21st century.
• An educational reform and better opportunities to empower individuals —particularly
young people— to improve their employability and economic and cultural prospects.
• Better living standards for people —particularly for the underprivileged— by
improving safety, health and family conditions.
Based on the above Agenda, AGCI has defined the guiding principles for international
cooperation policies adopted by Chile and the goals it seeks to achieve. Consequently,
economic cooperation shall define its own field of action, placing special emphasis on
how to supplement the goals and guiding principles outlined below.
a) The Guiding Principles of AGCI’s Cooperation Policy
• Vertical cooperation —received by Chile—is a complement to national efforts
in key underprivileged areas of development.
• Horizontal cooperation is a foreign policy instrument used by the Chilean
government. This contributes to the political, economic and cultural links with
similar countries and helps to strengthen Chilean presence in multilateral
organizations, in addition to enhancing the international profile of the country.
• International cooperation is an instrument to support Chile's economic
insertion by helping to improve its technological and institutional abilities to
address the challenges posed by internationalization and globalization. It also
serves to strengthen links with extra-regional conglomerates (the European
Union), inter-regional conglomerates (APEC) and regional conglomerates
(MERCOSUR, the Andean Community, etc.).
• International cooperation is an instrument that allows countries to address
common problems and challenges by resorting to collective efforts on an
international level in matters related to democracy, human rights, social
equality and gender issues, the environment, peace, mutual trust, etc.
b) The Aims of Cooperation Policies
* General Objectives:
− To support national development through the resources, knowledge and
opportunities for training abroad that are made available by international
cooperation.
− To contribute to the foreign policy goals defined by the Chilean government
by promoting horizontal cooperation actions to promote abroad the
technical and institutional skills that are available in Chile.
− To position international cooperation in Chilean society as an efficient
instrument that allows countries to address their common problems and
challenges by means of collective efforts.
* Specific Objectives:
− To strengthen the institutional framework in Chile for the management and
coordination of international cooperation in accordance with the challenges
posed by the new national and international scenarios.
− To reinforce and enhance the presence of Chile in the international
cooperation system, identifying available spaces where Chile is eligible for
opportunities to implement development programs and projects.
− To attract and manage scholarships coming from bilateral and multilateral
cooperation in order to enhance the chilean policy for developing its human
resources.
− To promote towards other countries, through horizontal cooperation, the
technical and institutional skills that Chile have, in accordance with the
needs and aims of the country foreign policy.
− To expand and develop cooperation actions aimed at less developed
countries by involving third countries and also international multilateral
cooperation agencies (Triangular Cooperation).
− To position the Chilean International Cooperation Agency in the national
public sector as a modern, efficient and key interlocutor in the issue of
international cooperation.
II. Background Surrounding the Concept of Economic Cooperation A. International Cooperation: Changes Through Time Frequently, the concept of international cooperation is linked almost automatically to the
English word "aid". This connection —and its translation as "ayuda" into Spanish— is
no accident, but it reflects a situation that existed five decades ago. At the time, the idea
of cooperation began to develop on the international scene and it was then understood
as an aid or transfer of resources —by way of grants— from the more developed
countries to other countries which, due to their level of income and precarious living
standards could be classified as underdeveloped.
At present, however, the concept of international cooperation has evolved to acquire a
more general meaning. This is basically in reply to the increasing complexity of the
issue which currently combines the concept of aid and solidarity with that of commercial
promotion and political interests.
In this respect, we could say that, at present, international cooperation is understood as "a series of actions that attempt to coordinate policies or join efforts to achieve common objectives on the international sphere"1.
The foregoing definition, which is apparently too general and vague, actually gives and
idea of the broad meaning the concept has achieved to day. However, a detailed
analysis allows us to define its contents more precisely:
In raising the issue of coordination and the need to join efforts, it emphasizes the
concept of cooperation in its true semantic sense, drawing it away from the traditional
notion of "aid". Thus, although the resources involved may be soft loans or grants,
cooperation should not to be understood as a unidirectional process in which a
country or a group of countries —i.e. the donors— provide support for another
1 "Ensayos sobre política exterior de Chile". José Miguel Insulza. Editorial Los Andes, 1998.
country —i.e. the recipients. Rather, we are currently in the presence of a "two-way
process" in which both types of countries —i.e. donors and recipients— agree to
cooperate to solve a given problem and, in so doing, satisfy objectives that each one
has set out to achieve beforehand. In this respect, cooperation always generates
"mutual benefits".
The term "mutual benefits" does not necessarily involve obtaining economic benefits
since it may also involve certain political objectives. Some problems in the
international arena extend beyond state borders or —due to their nature— involve
the validity of certain universal values, legal standards or "public assets" which
humanity is interested in preserving. These include, for example, environmental
sustainability, human rights, stable democratic systems, social equality, etc. From
this perspective, cooperation is also an ideal instrument to help find solutions that
involve more than one country, without infringing a fundamental principle in
international relations, i.e. non-intervention.
Finally, the definition clearly places the concept of cooperation in the international
sphere, reaffirming the idea that it is always part of the foreign policies of
governments. Thus, "both the forms of cooperation chosen by the donor countries,
as well as the decisions of those who are going to receive cooperation or with whom
cooperation will be exchanged, involve foreign policy decisions that are directly
related to the interests that each country wishes to express on the international
sphere".2
B. Changes in the Methodology of Cooperation
If cooperation is defined by the foreign policy goals of governments, the changes in
cooperation necessarily reflect the changes in the scenarios in which relations between
countries take place.
2 José Miguel Insulza, Op. cit.
As mentioned, cooperation was initially closely linked to the concept of aid and, more
specifically to what was then called "development aid". The basic principles of
cooperation were based on the belief that the less developed countries were hampered
by certain structural obstacles that prevented them from achieving development through
their own means. Problems such as lack of sanitary conditions, illiteracy, agricultural
backwardness and the lack of minimum infrastructure were viewed as obstacles to
development which could be eliminated with the help of international cooperation.
In this framework, the main criteria used for eligibility for cooperation were determined
by the degree of development and by strategic and political considerations linked mainly
to the geographic areas of influence of the donor countries.
In the early stages, cooperation had a strong political bias imposed by the Cold War, a
situation in which the major powers tried to guard their spheres of influence and their
sources of raw materials, which were usually located in underdeveloped countries.
This international scenario has changed considerably in the past decade. At present,
we are part of a world system with a new reality that has a direct effect on international
cooperation affairs. In this respect, some major elements to be considered are the
following:
Globalization, marked by the unification of world markets, that intensifies the breadth
and scope of the links and interconnections between states and societies.
Globalization increases interdependence, communication and interaction between
governments and national civil societies and also the international activities
conducted between the public and the private sector.
Liberalization of world trade, which results in a growing interdependence and
complement of world economies, giving rise —at the same time— to strong
pressures on the domestic economic systems by demanding the accelerated growth
of technological development, personnel retraining and the modernization of
production.
The growing ideological convergence among leading countries in the international
political system.
Due to these changes on the international scenario, basic world competition —
manifested through strategic conflicts— is being reoriented toward an area where
economic and trade interests predominate, as does leadership in science and
technology.
Therefore, the traditional donor countries are reviewing the main priorities in matters
related to cooperation. Priorities linked to global economic competitiveness tend to
predominate (trade promotion of goods, services, technology and capital). The same
applies to aspects deemed by the same countries to be critical factors for world stability
and the sustainability of their own development (e.g. the environment, democracy, and
extreme poverty). Consequently, cooperation has also become a part of economic links
in affairs between states supporting the active role played by countries in promoting their
own economies and in opening up their markets.
Cooperation for development continues to exist but it is increasingly targeted to specific
issues and to less developed countries. Thus, cooperation aimed at countries with an
intermediate level of development tends to shift from grants towards technical
cooperation with shared costs and economic cooperation. The emphasis is now placed
on a relationship between "partners" or associates who cooperate for their mutual
benefit.
In this context, the concept of economic cooperation begins to acquire increasing
importance.
III. Economic Cooperation
As said before, if international cooperation is always an essential part of the foreign
policy implemented by governments, in order to understand the changes that take place
in cooperation we need to take into account the new scenarios in which relationships
between states are taking place. Therefore, the emergence of new concepts linked to
cooperation —such as what is known as "economic cooperation"— is closely related to
the changes that have taken place in the world scenario and, particularly, to the
processes of globalization and integration currently going on.
In this sense, the concept of economic cooperation is an answer to the emergence of
new challenges in the processes of globalization and commercial integration that call for
the concept of cooperation as a relevant variable to be included. Not only in terms of the
political relations between states but also in the economic relations established in the
international context.
From a historical viewpoint, one could argue that, in economic terms, states have always
maintained relations of exchange and interdependence based on trade and investment.
Furthermore, in the second half of the 20th Century, foreign trade became increasingly
important as a share of G.D.P. and of the socioeconomic development of countries.
Specifically, foreign trade has grown at a rate higher than G.D.P. since the 1950s.
We could thus say, that at present, the existence of global markets are just the result of
an advanced stage of the process of internationalization of the different economies,
which began with the start of industrial capitalism in the 19th Century.
However, as is usually the case with long and medium term historical processes, the
features of any phenomenon become more clearly defined as the processes become
more explicit in the everyday activities of societies. Moreover, they do not necessarily
develop along the initially expected course. That is, the same forces which have given
rise to the process of globalization of the world economies has given rise to a new reality
which not only involves a more advanced phase in the process of integration but also
constitutes a completely different state.
This new qualitative status of the process of integration can be expressed by the
differentiation made by ECLAC3, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the
Caribbean. ECLAC distinguishes between the so called "superficial integration phase"
and the "deep integration phase". Superficial integration is the phase in which trade —
mainly of goods— played the main role. Therefore, the goals sought by the different
countries were relatively independent from each other. The only other requirement on
the international arena was that the "rules of the game" should lead to the gradual and
progressive liberalization of trade in such a way as to prevent a subsequent invalidation
through administrative measures. Once the rules of the game were established and
guaranteed, the market was supposed to be operating freely as to maximize the benefits
for the countries participating in the exchange.
The second phase —defined by ECLAC as one of "deep integration"— is characterized
by the fact that trade flows among countries become more complex, including trade in
services, capital goods and technology. Furthermore capital flows —of both financial
and venture capital— become increasingly important. This enhanced complexity is
reflected in the qualitative changes experienced by the process of trade and also in the
new role that cooperation begins to play in the international arena.
Thus, market globalization is a concept not limited to aspects linked strictly to trade. It
also involves a growing internationalization of production. This process entails a rapid
dissemination of technological knowledge and active international capital flows. It tends
to progressively reduce the differences in productivity among countries and to
substantially increase competition. This situation has given rise to a significant loss of
competitiveness in some sectors of developed countries, thereby causing a rise in
unemployment rates and significantly affecting the economies of those countries.
Therefore, the intervention of governments becomes more meaningful in achieving and
3 CEPAL: "Panorama de la inserción internacional de América Latina y el Caribe. 1996 Edition.
promoting —in the international scene— enhanced harmonization among domestic
regulations and policies in order to equate ex ante the terms of competition. In this
framework, cooperation strategies and international cooperation policies are closely
linked to the negotiation of trade agreements that emphasize the equalization of
standards and procedures, a requirement that will help to place participating countries
on the same competitive footing4.
On the other hand, increased trade in services and in new technologies calls for
important changes in traditional marketing methods. The nature itself of such trade is
much more complex than mere trade in goods and it is targeted at much more specific
and segmented markets, a fact that requires a bigger effort —in quantitative and
qualitative terms— to achieve a market share. Therefore, actors in foreign trade have
begun to make considerable efforts to be more knowledgeable about the different
international situations and the specific features of the parties involved in the more
complex markets. Cooperation has thus become an essential factor to support the
implementation of technological forays or joint ventures in production intended to
facilitate penetration into new potential markets.
Finally, the role of governments also tends to change. Although during the superficial
integration phase, the market tends to operate and the role of governments is limited to
ensuring compliance with internationally agreed upon rules-of-the-game, in the deep
integration phase governments take on a more active role as promoters of their
respective economies in the international arena, by resorting to different instruments
among which cooperation undoubtedly plays a central role.
Since this is the framework in which the concept of economic cooperation operates, the
task of defining and conceptualizing economic cooperation —as a way to make its
contents explicit and thus operational— is still pending.
4 A clear example of this is the Framework Agreement between Chile and the European Union, executed on June 21, 1996, Florence, Italy.
In order to come closer to defining the concept of economic cooperation, some of the
main features involved will be described below:
1. Economic benefits: Although the traditional definition of cooperation5 continues
to be valid, the emphasis on the prospective goals changes since these are
straightforwardly economic and are linked to exchange processes connected to
trade or capital flows.
2. Emphasis on the relationship between partners or associates who cooperate to obtain a mutual benefit: This is a relationship between two or
more actors that inevitably involves a concept of mutual benefit and shared costs
in the medium and long term. 3. Inclusion of the private sector: The reason for this is that cooperation is directly
linked to trade integration processes. 4. The changing role of the state: The state adopts a leading role insofar as
economic cooperation is essential to ensure top quality achievements in the
international arena by fostering the technological and productive development of
a given country. Similarly, and insofar as the involvement of the private sector
becomes a determining element in the process, the government should
concentrate on becoming the facilitator and articulator of initiatives rather than
directly implementing policy. 5. Actions or activities intended to secure indirect short and medium term
economic goals: Actions or activities conducted in the framework of economic
cooperation center on generating conditions to facilitate trade and enhance
competitive skills in world markets. Therefore, maximization of direct economic
benefits in the short term are foreign to the activities or actions of economic
cooperation as such.
In view of these features, we would like to propose the following definition for the
concept of economic cooperation:
5 "A series of actions to coordinate policies or to join efforts to achieve common goals on the international sphere".
Economic cooperation is a component of international cooperation that seeks to generate the conditions needed to facilitate the processes of trade and financial integration in the international arena by implementing actions with the purpose of obtaining indirect economic benefits in the medium and long term.
IV. Chile and Economic Cooperation Due to the ambiguous use of the concept of economic cooperation and the fact that
economic cooperation itself has developed strongly in the past few years, it appears to
lack as yet an outstanding presence in bilateral cooperation programs, particularly in the
cooperation flows that Chile still receives.
However, in practice, and considering the conceptual definition proposed above, actions
and projects involving economic cooperation have been underway for quite some time.
Some highly significant international treaties have been signed that involve a
considerable share of economic cooperation, as is the case with the Framework
Agreement for Cooperation executed between the Government of Chile and the
European Union and its Member States in Florence in June, 1996, in addition to specific
economic cooperation agreements such as the one signed by Chile and the Kingdom of
Sweden in January 1998.
The interesting thing in both cases is that both Sweden and the European Union have
been implementing cooperation actions and projects of this type for quite some time.
Therefore, the fact that economic cooperation agreements are being executed reflects
an already existing reality that calls for formalization by endowing it with more contents
and projection.
The challenge for our country, therefore —and particularly for AGCI— is to manage to
make operational the concept of economic cooperation through a clear identification of
priorities, fields of action, actors and mechanisms and facilitating instruments. In this
respect, the following should be pointed out:
1. Regarding priorities, the first thing to consider is that emphasis must be placed on
cooperation. Then issues need to be identified which, due to their inherent
features, are amongst those which can be a contribution to the country’s
international economic affairs.
In recent years, Chile has been very active in securing a position in the
international economic arena. This is made evident by the considerable number
of economic and trade agreements executed, as well as by Chile's participation in
several multilateral cooperation schemes either regional or related to specific
issues.
This seems to be the ideal framework for defining the type of actions needed to
develop an economic cooperation policy for Chile. The priorities of such a policy
should be based on government priorities, i.e. they should help place Chile on the
international economic scene, on the one hand, and on the other they should help
to improve the worldwide competitiveness of Chilean economy, by helping to
improve national labor and production standards.
In general, two major fields of action can be identified in which economic
cooperation can make a major contribution to achieving these goals:
Implementing cooperation actions aimed at making international trade viable.
Developing cooperation actions in the field of production.
Cooperation can be viewed as a privileged tool to generate conditions to
harmonize regulations, technical standards and regulatory and control methods
and policies to create the basic conditions for trade and to make competition
more balanced.
Cooperation in the field of production should include strategic alliances, the
creation of business networks to encourage production synergies, create new
opportunities, foster competitiveness, and facilitate the transfer of technology and
the training and further education of human resources.
2. In view of the priorities set forth above, the following step calls for the a
priori identification of certain actors (sectors and institutions) that could
participate in economic cooperation.
Certain criteria should be established so as to identify these actors, including the
main features defined for economic cooperation. These should be divided into
the two previously defined fields of action:
In the first field of action —i.e. trade facilitation— the actors involved should
comply with the following requirements:
Be state agencies involved in modernization processes, in matters concerning
regulatory standards and development.
Perform actions that will have a direct or indirect effect on trade facilitation.
Have access to the necessary counterpart funds.
A preliminary, tentative list of such actors includes the following:
* Ministry of Economic Affairs [Industrial Property, Consumer Protection Agency
(SERNAC), National Standards Institute (INN), National Statistics Bureau (INE),
Foreign Trade]
* Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications
* Environmental Protection Agency (CONAMA)
* Ministry of Finance (Customs)
* Ministry of Agriculture (Agriculture and Livestock Bureau - SAG)
* Ministry of Public Health (Management of the Codex Alimentarius)
Regarding the second field of action, which involves fostering production
development, the requirements should include:
Public and private agencies dedicated to fostering production development.
Access to counterpart funds.
Their development programs should assist beneficiaries from the private sector,
preferably small and medium sized companies
Coverage should be nation-wide or at least regional.
A preliminary list of said actors is provided below:
* CORFO (Government Development Agency)
* CORFO Technological Institutes
* Fundación Chile
* SERCOTEC (Technical Cooperation Bureau)
* Fundación EUROCHILE
* Ministry of Agriculture: Agricultural Planning Office (ODEPA) and Agriculture and
Livestock Development Institute (INDAP)
* Ministry of Economic Affairs
* PROCHILE (Official Chilean Trade Bureau)
* Ministry of Mining: National Mining and Geology Bureau (SERNAGEOMIN)
* CONUPIA (small and medium sized companies business association)
* ASEXMA (Association of exporters of manufactured goods)
* CEPPRI
* SOFOFA (Association of private industrial entrepreneurs) and Confederación de
la Producción y el Comercio (private sector trade and production association).
3. A third phase, in which progress needs to be made in order to carry out
economic cooperation programs and projects involves facilitating mechanisms
and tools to implement the programs.
In view of the complexity of economic cooperation and the innovative nature of its
schemes, economic cooperation should be addressed as a process that involves
the following main stages:
Identification activities to seek and recognize potential partners: With regard
to trade facilitation, the idea is to identify an institutional counterpart with which to
carry out a project. With regard to production activities, the idea is to identify
potential partners.
Implementation of actions to establish relationships and follow-up on established contacts: In the case of trade facilitation, efforts would be aimed at
identifying and negotiating the projects to be carried out. Regarding production,
strategic alliances need to be established to serve as the basis for subsequently
developing joint ventures.
The specific methods to implement economic cooperation need to distinguish
between the following:
Facilitating mechanisms, i.e. the components that create the general framework
and generate suitable conditions for cooperation to be possible. These include,
among others:
a) International Agreements involving economic cooperation
b) Inter-Institutional International Agreements
c) Chilean Funds available for applications regarding counterpart funding, etc. such
as FONTEC, FIA, FDI, etc.6
d) Specific donor programs such as the European Union's Al-Invest and Sweden's
Start-Syd7.
The instruments themselves which are the tools that enable the actions
proposed by cooperation to be carried out and which are intended to provide
support in the essential stages of training and start-up of economic cooperation.
The following instruments have been identified for the two fields of action defined:
First Field of Action: Trade Facilitation.
6 See Appendix. 7 See Appendix.
* Human resource training
* Internships
* Seminars
* Exchange of experts
* Joint research studies
Second Field of Action: Production.
* Training for entrepreneurs
* Technological missions
* Business missions
* Visits to international trade fairs
* Business rounds
* Preparation of thematic inventories of companies
* Financing of pre-feasibility studies
4. Lastly, the need to include economic cooperation in the horizontal
cooperation policy implemented by Chile should be granted priority status. Our
country should make full use of the headway that Chilean cooperation has made
in this respect, incorporating economic agents capable of generating supply-side
offers for horizontal cooperation.
In this sense, economic cooperation can make a major contribution by helping to
improve the ability to make use of the Economic and Trade Agreements that
Chile has executed with all South American countries and more recently with
Central America.
APPENDICES
A. Chilean Funds Available to Competitive Proposals that can be used as Counterpart Funds
a) FONTEC: Technological Fund
The purpose of this fund is to finance technological innovation projects carried out by private companies, activities related to the transfer of high-impact technologies, and support for the development of technological infrastructure in the private sector. Funding lines include: * Technological innovation. This covers two types of projects: (i) research and
development of technologies for products, processes or services and (ii) surveys, typification and quantification of natural resources including new technological developments.
* Technological infrastructure. This includes the implementation of industrial laboratories, quality control and certification units, technical information centers and other scientific and technological services.
* Technology transfer projects submitted in partnership. Technological missions and specialized consultancies.
* Management entities and technology transfer centers. * Pre-investment studies for scaling results of innovation projects. Projects
involving high rates of innovation intended to launch —on a commercial scale— technological innovations for products, processes or organizations.
b) FIA: Foundation for Agricultural Innovation
The role of FIA is to promote and coordinate technological and scientific development actions to introduce innovations in the production process and their subsequent transfer to the different sectors, i.e. agriculture and livestock, agribusiness and forestry. The funding line is the following: * Technological innovation and research projects and programs intended to
introduce new technologies to increase the productivity and competitiveness of Chilean agriculture.
c) FDI: Development and Innovation Fund
The purpose of this fund is to promote initiatives capable of making a substantive contribution to generating and managing processes of innovation and technological changes in Chile in areas where this will have a strategic impact on the country's economic and social development.
This is a funding mechanism for research studies that —among other things— provide the information needed to identify our natural resources, adopt the best possible decisions for their protection, exploitation and development, and that help to develop technological innovations that will allow for diversification and/or enhanced value added processing of products prepared with these resources.
d) FONDEF: Scientific and Technological Advancement Fund
The purpose of FONDEF is to provide funding for technological/scientific research studies carried out by universities with a view to strengthening and reorienting their potential to support productive development. Requests for funding are accepted for projects covering the following areas: * Agriculture and livestock farming * Forestry * Information technology * Manufacturing * Mining * Fishing, including aquaculture
The possible inclusion of new working areas to the six named above is being considered for the future. Areas under consideration with the biggest possibilities include health and education.
e) FIM: Mining Research Fund
The main purpose of the FIM is to carry out scientific and technological research studies for copper and its by-products. FIM carries out research guided by this approach which involves asking the various institutions that form the National Research System to submit bids. FIM Operating Framework: * Ensure a sustained increase in the productivity of the mining sector * Ensure the development of mining and metallurgical technologies in order to
face the challenges raised by falling prices and restrictions imposed by environmental regulations.
* Neutralize the growing threats to current uses for copper due to health reasons and ecotoxicity.
* Promote investment by mining companies in strategic marketing related to copper and the development of new applications.
* Increase the value of mining, making it into a permanent activity based on the exhaustible nature of mining resources.
B. Specific Programs of the Sources a) European Union
* AL-INVEST: European Program for Business Cooperation and to promote investments in Latin America.
The purpose of this program is to promote cooperation among entrepreneurs based on private initiative —both in Chile and in Europe— in order to help increase the competitiveness of Latin American economies and foster the internationalization of small and medium-sized European companies. Its specific goals are: (i) to organize and disseminate economic cooperation tools in Latin America by developing a network of Business Cooperation Centers, Eurocenters; (ii) link European and Latin American networks; (iii) improve, through the actions of the Eurocenters, the quality of business cooperation or investment projects submitted by Latin American companies and (iv) provide personalized support to the companies throughout the process, by way of the Eurocenters and the European Economic Cooperation network.
* ECIP: European Program for Funding Joint Ventures.
The ECIP is a financial tool of the European community intended to promote the establishment of joint ventures, privatization projects, and projects related to private infrastructure among operators in developing countries in Asia, Latin America, the Mediterranean and South Africa with their European counterparts. It is aimed mainly at small and medium sized companies. However, large companies can also participate in the program provided that their projects are of particular interest to the country. In contrast to most cooperation tools, ECIP is aimed at the market and its field of application covers all the stages of any investment project.
* ARIEL: Active Research in Europe and Latin America.
This program helps companies search for partners but its activities are not limited to promoting contacts. They also include guaranteeing the results by using suitable management capabilities in order to understand the product, the strategies and the requirements of entrepreneurs. Companies make use of the services offered in order to achieve the following objectives: search for clients, suppliers or subvendors, search for agents or representatives, search for technologies or technical knowledge and search for partners for joint ventures.
* AL-URE: Latin American Rational Use of Energy.
Its general goal is to help adapt the energy policies of Latin American countries to the new economic and environmental challenges, while also bearing in mind the need for economic growth, social development and environmental protection. AL-URE reaffirms the specific nature of its economic cooperation program that views energy actors in the European Union and in Latin American countries on the basis of mutual benefits and on favoring the adaptation of energy institutions and companies so as to allow for the development of services which are more suited to new requirements.
* URB-AL: European Urbanization - Latin America (network number four). This is a Decentralized Horizontal Cooperation Program of the European Commission. It is addressed to the cities, regions and other communities —whether local or territorial— of the European Community and Latin America, in order to create networks to conduct mutually beneficial actions. URB-AL provides the framework for exchanging and sharing know-how, among the different entities of the European Community and of Latin America directly involved in urban development problems. Its purpose is to open up a dynamic of association and to create a movement of cooperation among local agents in both regions. The general objective of the program is to promote effective improvements in socioeconomic conditions and in the population's quality of life. Its specific objectives are to increase the exchange of knowledge, experiences and techniques in order to address the demands imposed by the fast urbanization that has taken place in recent decades and the development of a series of thematic networks centered on the concrete issue of urban problems, among cities and local communities between both regions, thus helping to establish new networks and reinforce existing ones.
b) Sweden
* START-SYD: This fund is intended to provide support to small and medium sized Swedish companies. The fund makes available a certain amount of funds to finance the capacity of companies that enter into business partnerships.
C. TABLE OF NATIONAL ACTORS INVOLVED IN ECONOMIC COOPERATION
FFiieelldd ooff AAccttiioonn CCrriitteerriiaa ffoorr SSeelleeccttiinngg SSeeccttoorrss
PPhhaasseess NNaattiioonnaall SSeeccttoorrss FFaacciilliittaattiinngg MMeecchhaanniissmmss TToooollss
Private sector companies linked to production
1. Private and public production development fostering agencies
2. Possible access to counterpart funds
3. Beneficiaries of development programs preferably belong to small and medium sized companies from the private sector
4. Broad field of action, at nation-wide or regional level
1. Identification activities to seek and find potential partners
2. Implementation of actions to establish relationships and follow-up on established contacts
3. Establishing strategic alliances
* CORFO * CORFO Institutes * Fundación Chile * SERCOTEC * EuroChile
Foundation * Min. of Agriculture
(ODEPA and INDAP)
* Min. of Economic Affairs
* PROCHILE * Min. of Mining
(SERNAGEOMIN) * CONUPIA * ASEXMA * CORMA
1. Existing International Agreements including the subject of economic cooperation
2. Existing Inter-Institutional International Agreements
3. Chilean funds subject to competitive proposals financed by national counterparts
4. Specific programs of the sources
* Training for entrepreneurs
* Technological missions
* Business missions
* Visits to trade fairs
* Business rounds
* Preparation of thematic inventories of companies
* Funding for pre-feasibility studies
Sectors linked to the modernization of the state in matters related to establishing standards and regulatory controls and development methods in the economic field
Organizations linked to the modernization of the state whose actions have a direct or indirect effect on trade facilitation
1. Identification activities to seek and find counterpart institutions
2. Implementation of actions leading to the establishment of relationships and follow-up of established contacts
3. Project identification and negotiation
* Min. of Economic Affairs
* Min. of Transportation and Telecomm.
* CONAMA * Min. of Finance
(Customs) * Min. of Agriculture
(SAG) * Min. of Health
1. Existing International Agreements including the subject of economic cooperation
2. Existing Inter-Institutional International Agreements
3. Chilean funds subject to competitive proposals financed by national counterparts
* Human resource training
* Internships * Seminars * Exchange of
experts * Joint
research studies